Trump’s new Nasa chief is expected to announce plans to build a nuclear reactor on the moon this week.
While Nasa explored the possibility in the past, Sean Duffy, the US Transport Secretary and temporary Nasa administrator, issued a directive to give a clearer timeline and speed up the process.
Duffy’s directive stated: “Fission surface power (FSP) is both an essential and sustainable segment of the lunar and Mars power architectures for future human space exploration missions.
“To properly advance this critical technology to be able to support a future lunar economy, high power energy generation on Mars, and to strengthen our national security in space, it is imperative the agency move quickly.”
In 2022, the space agency put forward plans to build a nuclear reactor on the moon’s surface by 2030.
However, earlier this year, it was reported that China and Russia may join forces to establish their own nuclear reactor on the lunar surface ahead of the US.
Duffy’s directive noted concerns that should China or Russia get to there first, there is a risk that they could “declare a keep-out zone which would significantly inhibit the United States”.
The objective of Nasa’s plans is to outpace China and ultimately “win the second space race,” a source told Politico.
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Sean Duffy, the US Transport Secretary and temporary Nasa administrator, issued a directive to give a clearer timeline and speed up the process
Duffy’s directive also requires Nasa to enlist the help of companies and find a leader for the project within the next 60 days.
Three years ago, the space agency picked three separate concept proposals for a fission power system that could be launched by 2030.
It is currently unclear if Duffy will be using a similar plan as the one laid out by the space agency in 2022, or drawing up a new one altogether.
The plan involves using a 40-kilowatt class fission system that could last a decade in the moon’s environment.
It is hoped that the lunar system would be able to supply power for a future mission to Mars.
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It is hoped that the lunar system would be able to supply a human presence on the moon, as well as a future Mars mission
If Nasa were to succeed in the project, it would also be able to supply enough power to sustain a human settlement on the moon.
A lunar nuclear reactor would be able to provide a continuous and stable source of energy on the moon – a more reliable alternative to solar panels, which have been used to power Mars rovers in the past.
The US space agency said that a fission system would be able to operate effectively regardless of available sunlight and other environmental conditions.
However, Nasa face tough competition from China and Russia to establishing such a base.
China announced ambitions to become a space power and deliver astronauts to the moon by 2030.
The East Asian country has a planned mission in 2028, named Chang’e-8, which will seek to lay foundations for a permanent lunar base.
Pei Zhaoyu, the mission’s chief engineer, delivered a presentation in Shanghai outlining that the possible base’s energy supply may also include large solar arrays, pipelines and cables.
Rscosmos, Russia’s space agency, announced last year that it planned to team up with the China National Space Administration to build a nuclear reactor on the moon by 2035.
